Meyer Lemon Pistachio Pound Cake

I just love Meyer Lemons, they come in second only to Lemons from the Amalfi Coast….sigh, How I miss Italy!

But when life gives you Meyer Lemons, you don’t complain you bake!

I hate to admit that I’ve never been a big fan of Pound Cake, the ones I’ve had were usually to dense, or too dry, but never too delicious. And for that reason, I’ve never made a pound cake before. So I started looking through the recipes I found on Google for some inspiration and to get idea of how this cake should be put together. I found some similarities and some differences, most notably the use of cake flour instead of all-purpose flour. I finally decided to use what looked like a stellar recipe from Julia of Dozen Flours. Her cake looked too good to fool with so I made very few alterations to her original recipe, but I did cut it in half so I only ended up with one loaf instead of the killer bundt cake that she made.

If it had come out bad, I cut my loses, if had come out good, I saved myself from eating two cakes….sigh. Let’s say it was a wise decision, because my Meyer Lemon Pistachio Pound Cake was beyond amazing, and I could have easily finished off two cakes (over the course of week..lol) easily.

I would think this beauty would freeze well, so if your so inclined double the recipe and freeze one for another time.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and butter and flour one standard size loaf pan

Lemon Pound Cake

Using a zester or grater carefully remove the zest of the two Meyer lemons, being careful not to get into the white part of the skin.

Juice the lemons, removing the seeds and set aside.

In the bowl of a food processor, add the sugar and lemon zest and pulse until well blended (5 or 6 times) You can do this by hand if you like.

Allow this to set for 5 minutes to build the aromatics.

Sift together the flour, salt and baking soda and set aside

eat the butter in the bowl of your electric mixer for two minutes on medium to high speed (scrape down the bowl as needed)

add half the sugar mixture and whip for an additional minute, then add the remainder and continue to whip the butter /sugar mixture for four more minutes, scraping down the bowl and blade as needed.

Remove the eggs from the water, dry them off and add the eggs one at a time, beating for about 30 seconds in between each addition.

On a very low speed add in the flour mixture, mix until just blended.

Add in the Greek Yogurt and lemon juice , mixing just enough to incorporate them.

Pour batter into prepared pan, and top with the pistachios

Place the cake on the center rack of your oven and bake for 55-60 minutes. (start checking your cake at around 50 minutes. It should be browned on top and a tester stuck in the middle should come out clean when the cake is done)

Allow cake to cool on a wire rack for 15-20 minutes then remove from pan.

Lemon-lime glaze

mix the juice from one Meyer lemon and one lime with the confectioners' sugar and mix until well blended, then add zest.

This cake is amazing. I love to make pound cake & my sons will surely enjoy these flavors – lemon and pistachio. Bookmarked this. Baking this one soon. Thanks for tweaking the recipe for us, Chef Dennis!

I once would have concurred on the blah of pound cakes, until my sister brought the most moist and dense (and warm) coconut pound cake to a family gathering. — Your Meyer Lemon pound cake belongs up there! Very nice!

If life gave me meyer lemons I would certainly be baking this cake! I love using citrus in baked goods so I know this wouldn’t disappoint but what I think makes this pound cake really special is the addition of those lovely pistachios on top. I bet that little crunch and their flavor made this cake something hard to resist.

I just gave a huge bad of Meyer lemons away and still have a boat load on my tree! Can always use more ideas of what to make with all those lemons. Funny as I’ve done lots and lots with them but haven’t with them yet.

Welcome

Hi, I’m Chef Dennis. I fell in love with food at an early age, and realized that there couldn’t be a better way to make a living than by making people happy through food. Join me on my Culinary Journey as I share my recipes and stories from my life, with a sprinkling of advice about Google Plus [More...]